InterGame looks at the growing and changing support needs of the pay-to-play industry
Rather than adopting a one size fits all attitude, good customer support in the pay-to-play amusement industry comes down to building strong relations and understanding the client’s exact needs.
A strong understanding of the industry, built up over years of experience, helps massively as it means the supplier can see what the customer needs and wants and then help suggest the best solution for them. It also means that when someone calls up with a problem, the chances are something similar has happened to another customer at some point in the past.
“If you have experience then you are already half way towards helping resolve the situation,” says Brent Sales’ technical manager Steve Ansall.
“At Brent Sales we not only have one of the most experienced teams in the industry covering machine sales, prizes, spares and operations but we also have one of the most comprehensive product ranges.
“Our customers know that we understand their business and we will not sell them something unless we really think it is suitable for them. While we are the exclusive European supplier for Bandai/Namco we stock machines from other brands and we won’t push products unless they are extensively site tested and we are confident they will give the best returns.
“We also know our customers and their businesses intimately – we visit them and we talk to them on the phone all the time. You can’t have a ‘one size fits all’ attitude in this industry because it is made up from a number of unique individuals with different ways of doing business. Having said that, everyone gets the same professional service from us, we don’t give preferential treatment to anyone – you couldn’t in an industry this size as everyone talks!”
For Ansall, good customer support is more important in the pay-to-play industry today than ever before. “People have got less budget to spend so they need to invest very wisely. Arcades in particular are seasonal businesses and it is essential that they know they can get the support they need should a machine need a part or repairs at a busy time. Buyers can find cheap deals, but without the customer support and after sales it can prove to be a false economy.”
Embed Playsafe’s David Stenning reiterates this point. Having seen an increased demand for ‘advice’ from customers, he tells InterGame: “In the past, when you could put a machine in a site and it took money things were a lot easier. Now, we all have to work a lot harder at finding the edge on our competitors. Systems provide information and knowledge, the key to success if it’s used in the correct way.
This feature can be read in full in the May 2012 issue of InterGame magazine.
